THE ROMAN OVERTURE

The offer has been made.
It has been received.

Details, many, many details have yet to be made public.

They will be announced and they will be dissected.

There will be reactions.

It is fascinating to watch major parts of Christendom shake off the dust of centuries and attempt to alter historic configurations.
It is as though endless minor earth tremors have suddenly morphed into a major earthquake.
I know, the above is a negative happening – and yet it is a natural happening and there are those who would have it that it is normal for separated parts of Christendom to attempt realignment.

We are struck by the sheer bureaucratic complexity of what is organized religion today, not to mention other salient and hugely important concerns, many of which I doubtless do not even know about.

I came across a site yesterday which dealt at some length with the problem of the overlapping hierarchical lines of authority which will result from the creation of the Anglo-Catholic dioceses existing within the geographical boundaries of already existing Catholic dioceses.
I have spent an hour trying to find that excellent essay and have failed and now I am not even sure I used the correct words in describing the problem.

Anyway, it will be fascinating to watch things play out.

I am wondering if Rome has waited a bit too long to make this offer. A couple of years ago, the breakaway Anglican groups in North American were no way as well developed as they are today.

I wonder if disaffected American Anglicans would prefer their own, non-Roman version of Catholicity to the Roman variety.

The world is a strange and wonderful place, sometimes.